On 27/06/2006, at 10:40 AM, June Geraci wrote:

Well, that was a complete waste of time to read...

Oh, I don't know ...





Ranma and Ryoga were walking down the road.

"Just think, Ryoga, ten more miles and we get to Jusenkyo!"
exclaimed Ranma.

"Yeah, and then I'll finally be free of the pig!" exclaimed Ryoga.

"And I'm ... I'll ... I ... don't know what I'll do, since I'm gonna
keep my curse," said Ranma.

"You are!?" asked Ryoga. "Why?!"

"So I can keep dating all those hot lesbians," said Ranma.

"Hey, good point," said Ryoga. "Hmmm ... maybe I should get a girl
curse too."

***

And then he woke up.

He sat bolt-upright in bed.  His heart was pounding, his breath
coming in short gasps.  Horrified sweat stood out on his brow.
[Where did _that_ come from?] he wondered furiously, looking around
as if afraid that the nightmare might come true.  But the Bayankala
Mountains were gone; around him there was only the comforting
darkness of his room in the Tendo home, and the familiar rumble of
his father's breathing.

Ranma lay back down on his futon.  Sleep was a long time in coming.

***

The idea was still bothering him the next morning as he went
downstairs for breakfast.  Not that there was any chance of it ever
coming true, of course; nobody was more confident in his sexuality
than Ranma Saotome. But still ...

He was _definitely_ not happy to see Ryoga sitting at the table with
the Tendos, being fed rice, fish and miso soup by Kasumi.  True, it
had been a while since the Lost Boy had made an appearance, and
Ranma had to admit that he was about due.  But still.

They grunted at each other and ate in silence.  Ranma fell into a
brown study, still morbidly replaying his dream in his mind, and
Ryoga showed no more inclination to chat.  So breakfast passed
peacefully, for once; and all might have been well, if Akane had not
come in late, bid Ryoga a pleased hello, and asked him where he had
been.

"Oh ... er ... China," Ryoga stuttered, as tongue-tied around Akane
as ever.

The word jerked Ranma out of his reverie.  "Oh, God, you haven't
been to Jusenkyo to get a lesbian curse, have you?" he blurted out.

Suddenly, he felt everyone staring at him.

"Uh.  Wait.  That was just a dream, though.  Right?"  Ranma gave a
nervous laugh, scratching the back of his head furiously.

The stares did not abate.  Ryoga held his nose, his face suddenly
flushed.

"Lesbian curse?" inquired Akane.

"Oh, my," opined Kasumi.

Ranma felt driven to explain.  "Yeah, me and Ryoga were going to
turn into Sailor Senshi and start dating hot lesbian chicks," he
said.  In retrospect, this may have been a mistake.  "Um, in the
dream," he added, rather too late.

Soun Tendo, his face bland, hitched himself a few inches further
away from Ranma.

"Dream!" Ryoga exclaimed in sudden relief.  "That's right!  This
must be a dream, because Ranma would never say that in real life.
Right?  Here, hit me!"  He grabbed Ranma's hand and pulled it up so
that the fingers gave his face a feeble tap.  "It didn't hurt!  So
this must be a dream!" he shouted triumphantly.

"That's right!  It was a dream," said Ranma in relief.  When he
glanced around once more, though, everyone was still staring at him.
Wildly, he cast about for a way to escape.  Inspiration!  "Hey,
P-chan, wanna go out to the dojo?" he asked.  "Um, to spar."

Ryoga dropped his hand as if it were on fire.  "Uh ... sorry," he
mumbled.  "I, er, have to be going."  He snatched up his backpack
and made a hasty exit, never taking his eyes off Ranma.

Ranma watched him go, disconcerted.  "What was that about?" he
wondered aloud.

Nobody answered.

"Chya.  Whatever," he muttered, suddenly tired of the staring.  "I'm
going to do some training."  He stomped out of the room.

***

Akane watched him go with a dazed air.  "Dream?" she said.  "Maybe
Ryoga was right.  This must be a dream.  But am I asleep, dreaming
that I'm awake, or am I awake, daydreaming that I'm asleep?"

Without looking up, Nabiki held out a hand.  "Five hundred yen."


--------------------------------------------------------------------
Angus MacSpon                              Email: macspon@ihug.co.nz
ICQ: 65719513                      http://shell.ihug.co.nz/~macspon/





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